Mellinger Mennonite Church (Mennonite Church USA), located at 1916 Lincoln Highway E., Lancaster, PA, is one of the strongest and largest congregations of the Lancaster Mennonite Conference. With Jacob and Felix Landis, Martin Bare, Jacob Kreider, Joseph and Dorous Buckwalter, and others, Mennonite immigrants from the Palatinate, able to buy land from the London Company by 1722, the fertile acres soon became a prosperous Mennonite community. The settlers first worshiped in private homes. But at least by 1767 had a meetinghouse, called Lampiter. A schoolhouse adjoining was added later. Martin Bare as minister signed the Dordrecht Confession at the 1725 conference in Germantown. Benjamin Landis was his early co-worker as preacher followed by Jacob Hartman, Bishop Tobias Kreider, and John Stauffer in the 18th century. Martin Mellinger (1763-1842), an immigrant from the Palatinate, was a prominent deacon. When a new meetinghouse, now a sexton's house, was built in 1855, it was named in his honor. A new meetinghouse was built on the present site in 1884, with extensive remodeling in 1894. The 1950s brick meetinghouse replaced it in 1914. This has always been one of the two largest congregations in the Lancaster Conference, and remained largely rural in the 1950s, although located only three miles (5 km) from the center of Lancaster. In the mid-20th century the city rapidly moved to engulf the congregation and its building. Among the prominent ministers of first half of the 20th century were John and Tobias Kreider, David Buckwalter, Adam Ranck, John L. and Sanford B. Landis. In 1956 the membership was 600, with Elmer G. Martin as bishop, and David L. Landis and Harry S. Lefever as preachers. In 2005 the membership was 391.